Synopsis: From the writer/producer of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre comes this gut-wrenching, non-stop roller coaster ride through the hellish underbelly of inner-city America. A birthday celebration at an upscale restaurant sets in motion events that bring a group of friends face to face with the macabre world of cannibals, the Butcher Boys. The Butcher Boys are international predators who deal in human ­flesh - dead or alive.

When you watch Butcher Boys be sure to remind yourself that it was originally written to be a sequel to Texas Chainsaw Massacre. You'll need to keep that in mind because this plays just like an amped up Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie. It can definitely be said to take place in the same universe and maybe even that these boys are somehow related to the Sawyers.

It might also be that the movie is full of Chainsaw alum. So, for my sanity, I'm just going to go ahead and consider this a spin-off of Chainsaw. Like the Butcher Boys franchised the Sawyer's BBQ and took it to the big bad city where they wreak absolute havoc.

Butcher Boys kicks off pretty much immediately and is a relentless 90 minute chase through a dark and scary urban landscape where every turn exposes some whacked out creepizoid associated with this cannibalistic conglomerate. It ratchets and ratchets tension and nerves until the bat shit crazy everything hits the fan ending (also reminiscent of TCM) that will have your chin resting on the floor.

The acting is good, if even the good guys are a little dispensable, and the violence is cringeworthy. The characters, weird and shocking as they are, still feel familiar. That's not a bad thing, they feel like family. The direction is moody and dark keeping is in shadows and not knowing what is around the next corner.

I hate to keep comparing it to Chainsaw but it really does feel like a Chainsaw movie. It's certainly better than nearly all the sequel's we've seen, especially the recent abomination Texas Chainsaw 3D so I wonder why they didn't just let it be that.

Anyway, that aside, Butcher Boys is a pretty good movie with a lot of tension and plenty of jump scares to keep you interested. It'll definitely make you think twice before walking through a dark city alone. You'll get a kick out of the plethora of odd characters that turn up and do what they need to do.

They all show up again at the end for a film reunion/massacre so enjoy that too.

Butcher Boys is in theaters today and chomps its way on to DVD on October 8.

Butcher Boys

8 out of 10 Charbroiled Fingers

In theaters now!

BUTCHER BOYS
In theaters on: September 6, 2013
Starring: Ali Faulkner, Johnny Walters, Derek Lee Nixon, Tory Tompkins, Gregory Kelly
Written by: Kim Henkel
Directed by: Duane Graves, Justin Meeks
Synopsis: From the writer/producer of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre comes this gut-wrenching, non-stop roller coaster ride through the hellish underbelly of inner-city America. A birthday celebration at an upscale restaurant sets in motion events that bring a group of friends face to face with the macabre world of cannibals, the Butcher Boys. The Butcher Boys are international predators who deal in human ­flesh - dead or alive.
When you watch Butcher Boys be sure to remind yourself that it was originally written to be a sequel to Texas Chainsaw Massacre. You'll need to keep that in mind because this plays just like an amped up Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie. It can definitely be said to take place in the same universe and maybe even that these boys are somehow related to the Sawyers.

It might also be that the movie is full of Chainsaw alum. So, for my sanity, I'm just going to go ahead and consider this a spin-off of Chainsaw. Like the Butcher Boys franchised the Sawyer's BBQ and took it to the big bad city where they wreak absolute havoc.
Butcher Boys kicks off pretty much immediately and is a relentless 90 minute chase through a dark and scary urban landscape where every turn exposes some whacked out creepizoid associated with this cannibalistic conglomerate. It ratchets and ratchets tension and nerves until the bat shit crazy everything hits the fan ending (also reminiscent of TCM) that will have your chin resting on the floor.

The acting is good, if even the good guys are a little dispensable, and the violence is cringeworthy. The characters, weird and shocking as they are, still feel familiar. That's not a bad thing, they feel like family. The direction is moody and dark keeping is in shadows and not knowing what is around the next corner.

I hate to keep comparing it to Chainsaw but it really does feel like a Chainsaw movie. It's certainly better than nearly all the sequel's we've seen, especially the recent abomination Texas Chainsaw 3D so I wonder why they didn't just let it be that.

Anyway, that aside, Butcher Boys is a pretty good movie with a lot of tension and plenty of jump scares to keep you interested. It'll definitely make you think twice before walking through a dark city alone. You'll get a kick out of the plethora of odd characters that turn up and do what they need to do.

They all show up again at the end for a film reunion/massacre so enjoy that too.

Butcher Boys is in theaters today and chomps its way on to DVD on October 8.